Robert Mueller took office as FBI director in 2001 expecting to dig into drug cases, white-collar misdeeds and violent crime. A week later was Sept. 11.

wire reports

Mueller: 9/11 FBI head again catapulted into new challenge

WASHINGTON — Robert Mueller took office as FBI director in 2001 expecting to dig into drug cases, white-collar misdeeds and violent crime. A week later was Sept. 11.

Overnight, his mission changed and Mueller spent the next 12 years wrestling the agency into a battle-hardened terrorism-fighting force.

Now, Mueller once again finds himself catapulted into the midst of historic events: The Justice Department has named him special counsel to investigate potential coordination between Russia and the Trump team during the 2016 presidential election and related matters.

Republicans and Democrats alike praised Mueller, 72, as someone widely respected for his integrity and independence.

As FBI chief, Mueller stood alongside James Comey, then deputy attorney general, during a dramatic 2004 hospital standoff over federal wiretapping rules. The two men planted themselves at the bedside of the ailing Attorney General John Ashcroft to block Bush administration officials from making an end run to get Ashcroft's permission to reauthorize a secret no-warrant wiretapping program.

Oklahoma governor appeals for calm after verdict

TULSA, Okla. — Oklahoma's Republican Gov. Mary Fallin has called for calm after a jury found a Tulsa police officer not guilty in the shooting of an unarmed black man last year.

In a statement after Betty Jo Shelby was acquitted of manslaughter in the death of Terence Crutcher, Fallin said: "Those who disagree with the verdict have the right to express their opinions. I just ask that they do so in a peaceful manner."

About 100 people gathered in a plaza outside the courthouse after the verdict, chanting "No Justice No Peace. No Racist Police." The demonstration was peaceful and dispersed later in the evening.

Tulsa has a long history of difficult race relations dating back to a 1921 race riot that left about 300 black residents dead.

US: Venezuela crisis worsening, wants to prevent new Syria

UNITED NATIONS — The United States called Wednesday's first-ever U.N. Security Council consultations on Venezuela because the crisis is getting worse and the Trump administration wants to prevent another conflict like Syria, North Korea or South Sudan, U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley said.

Venezuelan Ambassador Rafael Ramirez strongly rejected the U.S. bringing his country's political dispute to the United Nations' most powerful body and accused Washington of again trying "to interfere in our domestic issues."

Haley said the U.S. intention wasn't to be "intrusive" or "heavy-handed" but to support regional efforts to find a political solution and "show respect for the Venezuelan people" who want free and fair elections, the release of political prisoners and the worsening humanitarian situation addressed.

Man dies after falling at Wrigley Field

CHICAGO — A man who struck his head after tumbling over a railing at Chicago's Wrigley Field has died.